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I’ve been a recycler since my childhood days. I always saved bits of fabric, string and paper to create collages or fold them into 3 dimensional objects to create a mini city. This is a habit that extended into my life as an artist today. In weaving there is a lot of waste. Long strands of unweavable yarn at the beginning and end of a loom woven project are inevitable. Although the strands are too short for the kinds of projects I do, I save the yarn and have used them to stuff pillows and add fringe to other projects or used them in Creative Aging MidSouth workshops with senior citizens. This spring I used my bits of leftover yarn and scraps of fabric from the linings of the purses and bags that I weave to create earrings. With the addition of some beads and wire they turned out quite colorful because the fabrics I choose always seem to be bright.

Earrings made from recycled yarn and fabric

The pair in the center is wrapped with fabric cut from upholstery scraps that I use for purse lining, and the other two are wrapped with strands of yarn.

Paper packaging also seems excessive to me, and I find that every week I recycle several folded boxes from food products and toiletries. Occasionally we have a few beer cartons which I salvage and use them for covers of my handbound books. And I suspect that my collection will grow because lately Memphis has become a sort of hot spot for breweries. You can read about that here. This fellow Memphis blogger is a local foodie and biking enthusiast who also knows his beer.

My latest handbound books made from beer cartons are currently for sale at Allie Cat Arts, a funky and eclectic art gallery in the Cooper Young neighborhood of midtown Memphis. Oh, and my earrings are sold there too!

Handbound books made from recycled beer cartons

And for those interested in making their own mini version of these recycled books, I will be teaching a class at Allie Cat Arts in late August. Participants need to bring only their own beer cartons and brown paper bags.

mini hand bound book made from recycled beer carton

The mini Ghost River book above utilizes a long stitch binding that a new learner of book arts can easily sew. Below is a detail of the hand stitching that I have incorporated into the spine of the full size Ghost River book currently for sale at Allie Cat Arts.

hand bound book made from recycled beer cartons and hand stitched over an exposed spine

I know how I’ll be staying cool as the dog days of summer are upon us here in the South.

It’s been awhile, hasn’t it? There’s a good reason for that! In addition to my teaching responsibilities and a couple of small shows where I have been selling my work, I have also been developing a couple of new products. In my work with handbound books, I have designed a series that I call “Geometrie”. They are soft cover books with designer fabric sewn to stiff interfacing and a triangular flap that slides under a sewn on fabric strip. The stitching on the spine is a triple chain link stitch which Keith Smith describes in his book “1-2-& 3 Section Sewings”

Soft cover books handbound with triple chain link stitch

And here is a detail of the front triangular flap and closure.

Soft cover handbound book with front flap closure

And my looms have all been seeing a lot of action these past few months. I have been working on handwoven vests and tops as well as more scarves. Most of my work will be included in WinterArts, a six week show that showcases regional artists and their one of a kind work. 2011 will be the third holiday season that this show has been offered to the community and it is now considered one of the most prestigious holiday shows in the Memphis Area.

Poster for WinterArts 2011

The show opens this Friday night, November 25 with a wine and cheese reception. All the 25 plus artists will be present to meet visitors and discuss their art. My space at WinterArts looks like this:

Display of handbound books, WinterArts 2011

Display of handwoven vests and tops, WinterArts 2011

Display of Handwoven Scarves, WinterArts 2011

Again, I apologize to my readers for not posting more regularly lately. And to all, I extend my thanks for your patience and loyalty in following MemphisWeaver’s blog. Wishing you all a Happy Thanksgiving, and may this be the beginning of a beautiful holiday season. Peace.

The Memphis Brooks Museum currently has an exhibit entitled “A Taste for China”, an exhibition of traditional Chinese visual and decorative arts and their connection to the Western world. In honor of the exhibit, the museum’s gift shop invited me to create handbound books with Asian motifs to sell during the run of the show.

The books measure approximately 5″ X 6 1/2″ each. All have fabric covers and their individual signatures, that is sections of several pages, have spine protectors made from Thai mango paper. The spine of the book itself is exposed and the binding is handstitched, a modified version of a traditional bookbinding technique known as the Coptic stitch.

Handbound journal with satin brocade cover, coptic stitch binding

Handbound journal 2 with satin brocade cover, coptic stitch binding

Handbound journal 3 with satin brocade cover, coptic stitch binding

Book of Ninjas, handbound, cotton fabric cover, coptic stitch binding

Gate Keepers, handbound, cotton fabric covers, coptic stitching

Below are photos of additional handbound books with Asian themes that I have made, but are not currently at the Brooks Museum.

I wish I could respond as easily as Igor in Mel Brooks’Young Frankenstein when he answers “There wolf!” to the question “Werewolf?” Where is my muse? Did it leave with the traveling Broadway production of Young Frankenstein when it left Memphis to go on to Omaha?

Mel Brooks' Young Frankenstein at the Orpheum, Memphis

Or perhaps it disappeared during those strange events that occurred during last weekend’s Supermoon?

Supermoon of March 2011

Wherever it is, it’s not here with me. And I’m getting anxious because, for one I have a couple of spring shows lined up. The first of which is less than two weeks away.

A Celebration of Fine Craft by Memphis Association of Craft Artists

I’ve been trying to come up with some fresh and new designs, but I just can’t get away from the old ones. Maybe some photos of my previously created work will help inspire my muse to return.

A red and black book jacket. My apologies to Ella Fitzgerald. That’s not how the song goes of course. Tacket refers to a hand sewing method of binding a book. Basically, it resembles a running stitch that is wrapped. Studio CaiLun has a very clear tutorial using this form of hand sewn binding. The wrapped effect of the binding gives the spine a bit of a jazzed look.

Above is my finished book with tacket binding. The cover of this book and the Ninja book below is made from cotton fabric purchased from KimonoMomo. The fabric is backed with nylon tricot and then glued onto the book boards.

Handbound "Ninja" book with tacket binding

Not sure if I will use a tacket binding for the books that I sell. It is rather labor intensive, as the wrapping takes a bit of time. The end result looks quite pretty, so I may reserve this technique for gift items or special orders.

And while I’m on the subject of bookbinding, here is my attempt at the “Rope” stitching described by Keith Smith in “1, 2, & 3 Section Sewings: Non-Adhesive Binding Volume III”.

Record book with rope binding

The rope binding is another decorative wrapping technique and done with two needles, one at each end of a single length of thread. It also lends an attractive appearance to the spine. The record book is part of a collection of old 45s and 33 1/3 rpm records that I handcut and bind to create a blank journal or sketchbook. None of the records are playable and so they are recycled into another life.

After sewing with the rope binding, I realized that there are many other techniques that can be used in hand sewing a binding. Some that come to mind are used in finishing the ends of a weaving project: twining, twisting, braiding and plaiting to name a few. I’m sure that tapestry techniques such as soumak can also be incorporated into a bookbinding technique. I really like the idea of sharing forms from various media, and so my experiments continue.

I know, I know. It’s been several months since my last entry. And I was so hoping to wish all of you a Happy New Year in 2011. Since I missed that date, how about a “Happy Chinese New Year – the Year of the Rabbit”. So here are my best wishes for a Happy and Healthy Chinese New Year! And a fun book to share in honor of the occasion.

Accordion Fold Book with Red Envelopes for Pages

Accordion Fold Spine of Red Envelope Book

This was a little something I made while I was putting off my real work, and that is making more blank journals for some upcoming spring shows. The accordion fold is made from Tyvek which I painted with Jacquard Dynaflow paints to match the various reds of the envelopes, inside covers and fabric front and back covers. The paper on both inside covers is Thai mango paper. The fabric covering the front and back is recycled from a child’s robe. Here is a photo of the red envelope book closed:

Fabric cover of the Red Envelope Book

Back to work now so I can earn some crisp dollars to fill up those envelopes!

Living in the Bible Belt guarantees that each holiday season there will be a gazillion opportunities to attend “Arts and Crafts Bazaars” at a local church on any given Saturday between Halloween and Christmas. Few of these fairs are juried by committees with discerning eyes for fine craft. So by this time in November, local folks may get pretty tired of seeing yet another onesie proclaiming that it’s wearer is “Cute as a Button” or thin socks made in China, or wreaths and jewelry assembled from kits that were assembled in China. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. But for those who expect a unique and finely made craft object produced by a maker who considers himself/herself a professional artist, and who produces his/her art locally, there is relief in sight.

In recent years, the craft holiday market in Memphis has been growing to include high end craft items created by local artists who have been doing this kind of work for years. Previously, many have found greater success in selling their work outside of the area where the market for good quality craft products command more respect and in turn a higher price. For years, the high end holiday shows in this region have been commandeered by the fine art market, which locally is very fine indeed. However, little room was left for the many glass artists, wood workers, fiber artists, metalsmiths, printmakers and clay artists who live and work in the Memphis area.

This holiday season, there will be two shows that are fairly new to Memphis (this will be the second year for both shows) that will showcase the fine crafts of local artists. And of course everything will be available for sale at very reasonable prices. And yes, my handwoven scarves and my handbound books will be at both shows. If you are in the Memphis area or plan to visit, please stop by. WinterArts will be open daily until December 24 and the Brooks Museum Artists Market will be a one day event on December 5. The Museum will be planning many special events on that day for shoppers and museum goers including a special holiday luncheon at their renowned “Brushmark” Restaurant. I hope to meet many of you there! More information is posted below.

WinterArts – Affordable Gifts by Local Artists. The Shops of Saddle Creek South, West Street at Poplar Avenue, Germantown, TN 38138. Opening Reception is Friday, November 26, 2010, 5:30 – 9 PM. Open daily from November 27 to December 24. Works in glass, clay, wood, metal, fiber, jewelry, photography and paintings.

Brooks Museum Artists Market at the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, 1934 Poplar Avenue, Memphis, TN 38104. Sunday, December 5, 2010 from 11 AM – 5 PM. Holiday bazaar presented by the Brooks Museum Gift Shop and representing local artists who also sell their work year round in the gift shop. Artists who will be there work in clay, wood, metal, jewelry, paper and fiber.